BLANCO v. OLIVERI

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Docket Number

2002-06504

Attorney(S)

Michael A. Cervini, P.C., Jackson Heights, N.Y. (Robin Mary Heaney of counsel), for appellant. Perez, Furey Varvaro, Uniondale, N.Y. (Joseph Varvaro of counsel), for respondents.

Judges

Robert J. Miller
William F. Mastro

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Smart Summary

Factual and Procedural Background

The plaintiff, Anibal Blanco, was injured after falling from the roof while painting the defendants' house. He filed an action seeking damages for personal injuries, alleging that the defendants' negligence in maintaining their premises and their violation of Labor Law § 200 contributed to his accident. The Supreme Court, Queens County, granted summary judgment dismissing the plaintiff's causes of action based on Labor Law § 200 and common-law negligence. The plaintiff appealed this order.

Legal Issues Presented

Whether the defendants were liable under common-law negligence and Labor Law § 200 for the plaintiff's injuries resulting from a dangerous condition on their property.
Whether the defendants met their initial burden in seeking summary judgment by demonstrating the plaintiff's inability to identify the cause of his fall.
Whether the plaintiff submitted sufficient evidence to raise a triable issue of fact to defeat summary judgment.

Arguments of the Parties

The opinion does not contain a detailed account of the parties' legal arguments.

Table of Precedents Cited

Precedent	Rule or Principle Cited For	Application by the Court
Ciesielski v. Buffalo Indus. Park, 299 A.D.2d 817	Liability under common-law negligence and Labor Law § 200 for dangerous conditions on property, regardless of supervision.	Supported the principle that defendants may be liable if they had notice of a dangerous condition causing injury.
Shipkoski v. Watch Case Factory Assoc., 292 A.D.2d 589, 590	Same as above.	Reinforced the liability standard for dangerous property conditions.
Moran v. Janowski, 276 A.D.2d 605	Same as above.	Applied to support liability despite lack of supervision.
Hajba v. Silander, 222 A.D.2d 813	Same as above.	Used to affirm liability principles under Labor Law § 200 and negligence.
Beckford v. Canessa, 205 A.D.2d 655	Same as above.	Supported court’s legal framework for premises liability.
McKinney v. Setteducatti, 183 A.D.2d 879	Same as above.	Confirmed the defendants’ potential liability for dangerous conditions.
Hunter v. IBS Realty Mgt., 298 A.D.2d 557, 558	Defendants’ initial burden in summary judgment by showing plaintiff’s inability to identify cause of injury.	Established standard that defendants met their initial burden in moving for summary judgment.
Bongiorno v. Penske Auto Ctr., 289 A.D.2d 520	Same as above.	Supported the procedural framework for summary judgment burdens.
La Duke v. Albany Motel Enters., 282 A.D.2d 974	Same as above.	Reinforced summary judgment standards.
Amadio v. Pathmark Stores, 253 A.D.2d 834	Same as above.	Confirmed shifting burden to plaintiff after defendants’ showing.
Skay v. Public Lib. of Rockville Centre, 238 A.D.2d 397	Same as above.	Supported procedural burden shifting in summary judgment.
Barretta v. Trump Plaza Hotel Casino, 278 A.D.2d 262	Same as above.	Applied to procedural summary judgment standards.
Noseworthy v. City of New York, 298 N.Y. 76	Rule regarding plaintiff’s burden of proof and possible exceptions.	Considered but found not to excuse plaintiff’s burden to demonstrate triable issue of fact.
Walsh v. Murphy, 267 A.D.2d 172	Comparison case regarding Noseworthy rule application.	Used for comparative analysis on burden of proof.
Wright v. New York City Hous. Auth., 208 A.D.2d 327	Comparison case regarding Noseworthy rule application.	Used for comparative analysis on burden of proof.
Lynn v. Lynn, 216 A.D.2d 194	Comparison case regarding Noseworthy rule application.	Used for comparative analysis on burden of proof.
Coughlin v. Bartnick, 293 A.D.2d 509	Requirement that plaintiff must demonstrate triable issue of fact.	Applied to reinforce plaintiff’s burden to oppose summary judgment.
Williams v. Econ, 221 A.D.2d 429	Same as above.	Supported the necessity of showing triable issue to defeat summary judgment.
Silva v. 81st St. Ave. A Corp., 169 A.D.2d 402	Same as above.	Reinforced plaintiff’s burden in opposition to summary judgment.
Agius v. State of New York, 50 A.D.2d 1049	Same as above.	Confirmed plaintiff’s obligation to present evidence creating triable issue.

Court's Reasoning and Analysis

The court first recognized that liability under common-law negligence and Labor Law § 200 may be imposed on defendants if a dangerous condition on their property, known or constructively known to them, caused the plaintiff's injury, regardless of whether the defendants supervised the plaintiff's work. The defendants met their initial burden for summary judgment by demonstrating the plaintiff's inability to identify the cause of his fall. The burden then shifted to the plaintiff to present evidence creating a triable issue of fact.

In response, the plaintiff submitted an affidavit from a co-worker describing dislodged roof shingles observed after the fall, but this affidavit failed to establish a connection between the dangerous condition and the plaintiff's fall. Even assuming the defendants had notice of the condition, the plaintiff did not demonstrate causation. The court also considered but did not apply an exception under the Noseworthy rule, concluding that the plaintiff remained obligated to show a triable issue of fact.

Accordingly, the court found that the plaintiff failed to meet his burden, and summary judgment dismissing the causes of action based on Labor Law § 200 and common-law negligence was proper.

Holding and Implications

The order of the Supreme Court, Queens County, granting summary judgment dismissing the plaintiff's causes of action based on Labor Law § 200 and common-law negligence is affirmed insofar as appealed from.

The decision results in the dismissal of the plaintiff's claims against the defendants. No new legal precedent was established; the ruling applies existing legal standards concerning summary judgment burdens and premises liability under Labor Law § 200 and common-law negligence.

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ANIBAL BLANCO, appellant, v. JOHN OLIVERI, ET AL., respondents.

DECISION ORDER

ORDERED that the order is affirmed insofar as appealed from, with costs.

The plaintiff fell from the roof while he was painting the defendants' house. The complaint alleges, among other things, that the defendants' negligence in the maintenance of their premises, as well as their violation of Labor Law § 200, contributed to the accident. Contrary to the arguments advanced by the defendants in the Supreme Court, if the plaintiff was injured in whole or in part as a result of the existence of a dangerous condition on the defendants' property, of which the defendants had actual or constructive notice, the defendants may properly be held liable for the plaintiff's injuries under common-law negligence and Labor Law § 200 irrespective of whether they supervised the plaintiff's work (see Ciesielski v. Buffalo Indus. Park, 299 A.D.2d 817; Shipkoski v. Watch Case Factory Assoc., 292 A.D.2d 589, 590; Moran v. Janowski, 276 A.D.2d 605; Hajba v. Silander, 222 A.D.2d 813; Beckford v. Canessa, 205 A.D.2d 655; McKinney v. Setteducatti, 183 A.D.2d 879).

In seeking summary judgment with respect to the causes of action based on common-law negligence and Labor Law § 200, the defendants "satisfied their initial burden * * * by demonstrating that the injured plaintiff was unable to identify the cause of his fall" (Hunter v. IBS Realty Mgt., 298 A.D.2d 557, 558; see Bongiorno v. Penske Auto Ctr., 289 A.D.2d 520; La Duke v. Albany Motel Enters., 282 A.D.2d 974; Amadio v. Pathmark Stores, 253 A.D.2d 834; Skay v. Public Lib. of Rockville Centre, 238 A.D.2d 397; Barretta v. Trump Plaza Hotel Casino, 278 A.D.2d 262). The burden then shifted to the plaintiff to submit evidence tending to show the existence of a triable issue of fact.

The plaintiff failed to meet this burden. In opposition to the motion, the plaintiff submitted the affidavit of a co-worker which established only that, after the plaintiff had already fallen, the co-worker observed that "pieces of the roof shingle had become dislodged along the seam where the roof meets that wall of the house about 5-6 feet from the peak," a location that may or may not correspond to the position where the plaintiff fell. Even assuming that the remaining contents of this affidavit were sufficient to raise an issue of fact as to whether various areas of the roof were affected by loose or detached shingles, and that the defendants had notice of the deteriorating condition of the roof, the affidavit contained no evidence connecting the occurrence of the plaintiff's fall with this allegedly dangerous condition.

Assuming that the rule of Noseworthy v. City of New York ( 298 N.Y. 76) has any application here (compare Walsh v. Murphy, 267 A.D.2d 172; Wright v. New York City Hous. Auth., 208 A.D.2d 327; Lynn v. Lynn, 216 A.D.2d 194), the plaintiff is not excused from his burden of demonstrating the existence of a triable issue of fact to avoid summary judgment (see Coughlin v. Bartnick, 293 A.D.2d 509; Williams v. Econ, 221 A.D.2d 429; Silva v. 81st St. Ave. A Corp., 169 A.D.2d 402; Agius v. State of New York, 50 A.D.2d 1049). Here, the plaintiff failed to identify any triable issue of fact as to the essential issue of causation, and summary judgment was properly granted to the defendants dismissing the causes of action based upon Labor Law § 200 and common law negligence.

FEUERSTEIN, J.P., H. MILLER, TOWNES and MASTRO, JJ., concur.